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The family has been on a (delayed) road trip. We were scheduled to leave on Good Friday for Charlotte, NC to visit my mother, my sisters (including the one from San Diego) and my 19-y.o. niece. But I felt awful the previous Wednesday night: Chills, yet sweating; sore throat, and generally a desire never to leave my bed ever again. I wasn’t that much better on Thursday. I felt marginally better on Friday, and I was willing to give travel a shot. The wife, conversely, thought I should actually try to get well before departing.

Random interesting things we experienced:

In Pulaski, VA McDonald’s, after I had ordered lunch.
Employee #1: This salad seems warm!
Employee #2: Shhh1 Don’t talk like that in front of the customers. Don’t say stuff like that!
Employee #1:: I don’t care! I’m always going to tell the truth!
(Does Employee #2 think I’m deaf? BTW, I thought the salad was fine, though I was ready to return it if it wasn’t.)

POLLEN! All over all the the cars on Tuesday morning, so thick one could write, “Head cold” all over them.

Perkins’ restaurant somewhere in central Pennsylvania: Poster for American Idol candidate Aaron Kelly; actually watched the results show (for first time in three years) to see if he survived; he did. But viewing reminded me why I HATE the AI results show; they just drag out the torture. i

Coolest water tower: in Mount Jackson, VA.

Worst traffic jam: northbound on I-77 Wednesday morning just north of Statesville, NC. 10 miles in 50 minutes. The most frustrating part is that we could have missed it by exiting the highway and taking Route 21 for 20 miles.

In Walgreen’s in Charlotte Tuesday night:
Customer: I didn’t like what you said!
Employee: I didn’t say anything.
Customer: You were pointing at my family, and…
Employee: I didn’t say anything.
Customer: You are in customer service, you ought to know better.
Employee: I didn’t…
Customer: I’m going to talk to the manager. Where’s the manager?
Employee: Go right ahead. [Walks away.]
Customer: I’m going to tear this m*****f***in’ place to the ground!
(We left a few minutes later with a degree of trepidation.)

Greatest annoyance about our hotel, the Drury in Charlotte: the smokers who stood six feet from the entrance, every day, so that one has to run the gauntlet to avoid the stench. The greatest pleasure about our hotel: the glass-sided elevator; the daughter also liked the chandelier.

There were on the road, heading from from the Bluebird bus company in Alabama, driving to Quebec five new school buses, one pulling a van we assume carried the drivers down. The daughter asked what was on the buses, then repeated the phrase “Arretez aux signaux”.

The trick about this rip is that we spent more time getting there and back than time actually in Charlotte. We arrived on Easter Sunday in time for dinner and left on Wednesday morning. We picked places that had exercise facilities then didn’t exercise. Both places we stayed at had pools, which we used once, on Monday morning. We DID take advantage of Internet connectivity, but had little time to actually use it.

The chief task turned out to be working on the family tree. Best thing about the trip: the daughter and the niece, first cousins despite a 13-year age gap, got to bond. Glad to have gone, but happer to be back home.

One Response

Cool trip. That’s a neat water tower and how many times does a kindergartner get to see all the school buses being delivered? I’m with your daughter on the chandelier. I love chandeliers and have since I was small. I have always enjoyed looking at beautifully designed and decorated homes and she might have a penchant for that too.

Glad you improved. Pity you didn’t get to spend more time with family but at least you got to catch up a bit.

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